Saturday: The Idle Hands EP Release
Last night I went to Nick and Eddie for The Idle Hands' EP release show. By 10:30, opening band We Became Actors were halfway into their Brit-rocking set and the crowd was already packed with new-wave fans of the band (thanks to a boost in popularity via the Current) and old-school music scenesters - photographer Matt Porath; writer Max Sparber; and most of Faux Jean's various lineups over the years (Matty Schindler, Al Weiers, Steve Bakken).

I've always had a love/hate relationship with the eatery serving as a music venue. On the downsides, the sound is not the best (thanks to the odd shape of the room and lack of acoustics), nor is the flow of the room (tables and chairs are left in the middle of the room for showgoers to weave in and out of). The (excellent) bar staff seem overwhelmed by the crowd, as are the bathrooms. But there's no other place I could catch live music while noshing on delicious pork cabbage tacos; no other place where the barstaff makes it feel like my very own Cheers (excepting Clubhouse Jager); and no other place that has a tucked-away little back bar that's reminiscent of a secret speakeasy, the bar's best-kept secret.

Also apparently in on the secret: resident celebrity Josh Hartnett. He was holding court in the back bar with his pal, local director Rob Perez and bartend extraordinaire, Paddy Mulloy. (Harnett exec-produced Perez' 2009 flick Nobody, and starred in the Perez-penned 40 Days and 40 Nights.) Spotting Hartnett at Nick and Eddie isn't exactly surprising for regulars of the bar, nor is his penchant to surround himself (or be surrounded) by any number of ladies at any given time of the night. As for myself, I always feel unnecessarily awkward in such a situation. When I said hello to Perez, whom I'd met awhile back at the Weisman closing bash, he gave me the regular introduction, "This is Josh." Um, duh. I said, "Yeah, we've met," not meaning to sound like such a douche. I went back to chatting with Perez and got the heck out of there.

Here is a dark photo I inconspicuously shot of Hartnett behind the bar with Paddy:
By the time I emerged from the back bar, BNLX's signature hallucinagenic, seizure-inducing light show had begun to fill the bar. I sidled up to Alicia Zobbe-Hogdal (aka @meatpit) and we let our retinas go into shock as the twosome comprised of Ed and Ashley Ackerson tore through a set of meaty powerpop. The band will be celebrating yet another of its EP release shows (#5 to be exact) this Friday at Cause, playing once again with The Idle Hands. But if you've seen one BNLX show, you've seen them all. For all their consummate professionalism and musical chops, it's sort of a one-trick pony. I went back to the bar and had Brent pour me another Jameson-on-the-rocks.
The Idle Hands were apparently envious of BNLX's light show and oddly decided to incorporate it into their set. BNLX are defined by their light show; but now, who are they? Regardless, The Hands served up a tight set of tracks from their 2009 full-length, The Hearts We Broke on the Way to the Show, and their new EP, including the sharp-tongued "Socialite Deathsquad." The band offers hints of everything from Franz Ferdinand, to Blur and Pulp all the way to The Beatles, and as a Brit-pop lover myself, I can't hate on that. The only disappointment: frontman Ciaran Daly's voice went out on their 2009 hit "Loaded," one of their best tracks. Hey, you can't win 'em all, but cheers go out to a band that toiled for years in various incarnations before finally tightening up, and gaining some well-deserved local popularity, radio play and national press as a result.
I wish I could finish this up with an epic story about partying at Josh Hartnett's house with the Idle Hands, but unfortunately I ended up at a non-party in Uptown where Sea Change chef Erik Anderson wrestled with a pit bull.